One-piece fabric foot protector



Feb. 17, 1953 M. G. LUCHS 2,523,433

ONE-PIECE FABRIC FOOT PROTECTOR Filed Oct. 16, 1950 Patented Feb. 17, 1953 UN ST TE- PATENT OFFICE ONET-BIECE FABRIC FOOT PROTECTOR Morton G. Luohs, New York, N. assignor to "J. W. Landeflberger & Q01, PhiIadeIphiaJPa a corporation of Bennsylvania 1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to ladies footwear and particularly to a thin knitted foot covering commonly known as a foot protector.

Heretofore in articles of this general character, it has been customary to provide only one seam at the center of the heel and only one seam at the top of the toe. In many cases, this has been a serious disadvantage and the causeof discomfort to the wearer. Furthermore, such a seam is much more conspicuous than my present construction, when open-toe and open-heel shoes are worn.

A primary object of the invention therefore, is to provide a foot protector which can be made from a single pattern of knitted fabric and which is stitched on the sides rather than in the front and back.

A further object of the invention is to provide a knitted fabric foot protector that is inconspicuous, comfortable, and which leaves no mark on the wearer's foot.

A further object of the invention is to provide a foot protector of the type described herein, having two spaced seams on the heel.

A further object of the invention is to provide a foot protector of the type described herein, having two spaced seams on both the heel and the toe.

Further objects will be apparent from the specification and drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective showing a foot protector constructed in accordance with the present invention, having two spaced seams on both heel and toe.

Fig. 2 is a side view of the protector as it appears on a wearers foot;

Fig. 3 is a perspective showing the heel of the protector on the wearers foot;

Fig. 4 is a flat pattern of the heel and toe two seam protector;

Fig. 5 is a transverse section as seen at 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a section as seen at B6 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. '7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional detail as seen at l'l of Fig. 1.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a piece of knitted fabric In which has a bell-shaped body I l formed integrally with a fishtail-shaped toe portion I2 and a cup-shaped heel portion IS. The toe portion l2 has a concave, arcuate edge It and two opposite convex sides l5 and H5 which extend from edge 14 to the neck IT at one end of the body portion, which forms the foldline between the toe portion l2 and the body portion H. The sides l8 and I9 of the body ll flare arcuately outward from the toe portion, thence are substantially parallel, and at the heel they again flare outwardly to terminate at the intersection of ends 20 and 2|. The heel portion [3 has a substantially straight end 22 which joins initially parallel sides 23 and 24 that are convex and bend arcuately inward to the foldline 25. In other words, from the heel the sides of the body portion ll curve concavely inwardly and angle toward the longitudinal axis of the body portion to substantially midlength of the body portion and thence convexly inwardly and angle again towards the longitudinal axis of the body portion to terminate at the front of the bodyportion or neck M. It will be understood that the exact size and shape of the flat pattern depend upon the size of the protector that is to be produced.

After the fiat pattern is cut as shown in Fig. 4 and described above, the toe portion [2 is folded along line ll and stitched to edges l8 and I9 respectively. Likewise, the heel portion I3 is folded along line 25 and stitched to sides 20 and 2|. The stitching for both the heel and toe closures is shown in Figs. 5 and 6. After the above stitching has been completed, elastic 2'6 may, if desired, be stitched around the perimeter of the entire protector, as shown in Fig. '7. In the form described above, there are two seams A and B at the side of the heel that are comparatively inconspicuous, comfortable, and do not leave any mark on the wearer's heel because the seams are removed from the pressure area between the wearer's foot and the shoe. Similarly, two seams C and D are provided at the front or toe of the protector, these seams being well on the side of the toe, thus rendering them inconspicuous and comfortable.

The protector described above is quickly and inexpensively manufactured from a single flat pattern and in addition, provides substantial improvement in comfort and appearance.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

A blank for a one-piece foot protector comprising a heel portion having one straight outer edge and a pair of initially parallel sides at right angles to said straight edge said sides curving inwardly and terminating in spaced relation with each other; a body portion formed integrally with said heel portion comprising initially outwardly convex arcuate ends extending from the termini of the said sides of the heel portion and terminating in straight lengths of the same extent as the parallel sides of the heel portion, arcuate sides for the body portion extending from the termini of the body portion ends and curving concavely inwardly and angling toward the longitudinal axis of said body portion to substantially midlength of said body portion and thence convexly inwardly and angling toward the longitudinal axis of said body portion and towards the front of the body portion and terminating in spaced relation with each other; and a toe portion formed integrally with said body portion at said front end thereof and comprising a concave arcuate outer front edge, and a pair of convex arcuate sides connecting the termini of the inwardly curving body portion sides and the termini of the outer front edge of the toe portion.

MORTON G.LUCHS.

4 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 988,159 Wiltse Mar. 28, 1911 2,001,293 Wilson May 14, 1935 2,038,844 L Dorf Apr. 28. 1936 2,265,089 Turbin Feb. 2, 1941 2,394,844 Cooper Feb. 12, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 248,895 Great Britain Mar. 18, 1926 492,744 Germany Mar. 1, 1930 

